Alaska Airlines jet loses cabin pressure, returns to Seattle

Below:

Next story in Life

SEATTLE — A 12-inch hole in the fuselage of an Alaska Airlines jet caused the plane to lose cabin pressure, forcing the pilots to make an emergency descent and return to the airport, authorities said Tuesday.

The incident Monday involved an MD-80 jet en route from Seattle to Burbank, Calif. The plane landed safely at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, and none of the 140 passengers was hurt.

A ramp worker acknowledged that he failed to report immediately striking the plane at the gate Monday with a baggage cart or baggage-belt machine, said Jim Struhsaker, a spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board.

The worker told the agency that although the vehicle touched the plane, he was not aware he had dented it, Struhsaker said.

The accident created a crease in the plane’s aluminum skin, which opened up into a 12-by-6-inch gash as the jet came climbed to 26,000 feet, Struhsaker said.